Behind the Katt's Eyes
by Alex Warlorn
Summary: What is Katt's REAL origin? What's her story? Got name right this time. Spelling corrected.


katt.html "Ok boys, you're on your own." She said over the vid-com. "You aren't coming with us?" Asked Falco concerned.   
"Sorry Falco, attacking Andross' front door step isn't my idea of bravery. More like insanity."   
"We could really use you. Beside, we aren't going to try and take on the entire Venom Space Force, just punch through." Said Fox his face appearing on the other monitor.   
"When you've managed to punch though a brick wall let me know." Replied Katt Monroe.   
"So you aren't coming?" Asked the bird one last time.   
"Look guys I'm sorry. I just . . . have some things I need to take care of back on Zoness. If you assassinate Andross. Let me know ok?" She asked as if such news wouldn't spread through out the Lylac system like wild fire.   
Falco said, "I don't think you'll need us to tell you that."   
"Whatever, see you around . . . Falco." With that she did a one-eightly turn and the Cat's Paw flew back the way they had come though the appropriately named sector Z. Star Fox had encountered three squadrons of Invaders MK III's and six Copper Head missles targetted at their light cruiser/carrier Great Fox. Katt had been right in following them from Zoness.   
The Great Fox and the four Airwings soon vanished from her radar. Katt sighed stroking back a locke of her purple fur. Another day, another thorn pushed into the side of Andross. And her conscience still didn't let her sleep.   
She set the fighter on autopilot back to Zoness. Andross' occupation forces were in total disarray from Star Fox's surprise attack on their supply station on the planet. And already the population was causing them more trouble seeing a chance that wouldn't come again. Laying back in the pilot's chair of the tiny fighter she rolled back her sleeve. It was still there. She knew it would always be there. But sometimes she was able to pretend that it wasn't, and that the Corenaria Military's profile on her was correct.   
_ 'Katt Monroe: Believed to be a cargo pilot whose ship was crippled by Andross' forces and has since given assistance in the road blocking of Venom forces._   
_ Her fighter is the Cat's Paw, a heavy modified Venom Invader MK III fighter, (probably stolen) general nuisance but of no threat and is of occasional assistance.'_

The tatto on her arm read,   
** VFC5472** Venom Fighter Core pilot: 5472. 

How long had it been now? Two years? Three? She couldn't remember. All she did remember was what she had done for the year before that. 

_ "Sis your crazy!"_   
_ "You take that back!"_   
_ "No way! How can you think that Venom is a good thing for Zoness?"_   
_"Corenaria ignores us. Our only income is the tourist trade. We've suffered two depressions in the last twenty years. Andross has promised us that all MacBerth's products will be shipped though Zoness space. Our trade and shipping companies will finally start growing."_   
_ "Katt, those depression were cause by the wars Andross started and you think he's now going tobe the solution to our problems?"_   
_ "You don't honesty believe all that Corenarian propaganda about Andross do you?"_   
_ "Not all information that we get is fake."_   
_ "Oh shut up! I'm signing up and you can't stop me. Your not mom! And she'd want me to do what I felt was right."_   
_ "Mom and dad are dead. Leave them out of this."_   
_ "Whatever. See ya sis." Katt didn't even wait for a response before storming out the door._

Katt could still feel the needle as it pierced her skin injecting the ink and dyed her fur along with it. The officer there said it was the best kind of identification it could never be removed.   
It also gave Katt a sense of finality, she had done it, she was in the Venom army. She later read in a report she got off a dead Venom officer that was also what the tattoo was meant to do.   
Katt was just one of thousands of Zonessers to join the Venom Space Force. It was months before she saw action. Venom did not tolerate substandard fighters pilots in it's army. The training was down right intense. She was taught how to form and break formation quickly, trainees nicknamed it, the 'Culling' because it was during that part of training, a lot of wanna-be pilots got killed by collision.   
Katt's natural reflexes had keep her and her fighter out of the repair bay. Which Katt was grateful for. The doctors were always egaer to play with their latest toys, whether they had been tested or not.   
Katt turned down being a wing captain, she preferred to fly solo. The Zoness government was not so amused. People like Katt were getting more and more numerous. But the government itself was still not under Venom control. That changed a year after Katt joined up.   
Katt had been part of the invasion's second wave. Her computer recorded her shooting down twenty enemy fighters herself. Why couldn't they see this was for the best for Zoness? They were all ignorant sheep who just listened to whatever was told them. She wasn't that simple-minded.   
Andross made good on his promise, but he delivered something else as well. Toxic waste, and lots of it. And the local fauna was rounded up for Venom bio-weapon experiments.   
But this took time. And by the time anyone noticed it. Andross was there to stay. Katt felt sick. Her sister had been right all along. Katt was the fool. Not her. Then came the kicker. One Katt would remember for the rest of her life.   
After an eternity Katt managed to get a few hours off. She had to see her sister. To tell her she was in the right, that she had always been right, Andross _was_ the monster, and beg for her forgiveness on her fore paws and knees if necessary.   
Her sister's house wasn't there anymore. Public files said there had never been a house there, or Zonessers by the name of Kitty and Katt Monroe there. Venom military records, the one Katt had accesses to, said that the house had been the meeting place of anti-Venom groups, a sting operation had resulted in the deaths of all present and destruction of the house hold. Katt shivered. She read the names of those killed. Her sister's name was at the top. Laser shot to the head.   
What Katt did next was mentally deranged at best. In a patrol over Zoness, she had the farther back wing position, she had shot down the commanding Invader Fighter without a second though, throwing the rest of the wing into chaos and flew like a bat out of fire. Invader type three fighters were capable of planet to planet jumps Katt had waited until she had been assigned to one to escape.   
The chaos lasted only a minute though, and she saw four other Venom fighters on her tail. It had all resulted in a marry chase across half the sector. Katt had been thinking she was going to die the whole time.   
Her fighter was running on fumes by the time she reached sector Y, she only had about a minute of propulsion left, it took several hours to get to Corenaria from the magnetic dust cloud. It was the only place the cat could think to go. It was the only planet totally devoid of Andross' influence. And she wanted to get away from that more than anything.   
She knew she was going to die right there. Then another group of ships appeared on her radar. She recognized the id signal as the 'Hot Roders' a bunch of pilots which acted as racers and as a information carrier group when something was too valuable to send via data transit.   
Katt hadn't realized that the other Venom fighter would be low on fuel too. They must of been expecting to be picked up after killing her. That was a joke from what Katt had learned about Venom's regard for sentient life. The Venom fighters stupidly tried to engage in a dog fight with the fast and slimmer Hot Rodder ships, they ran out of fuel mid way and where shot down without a fight.   
Katt was surprise they had helped her out, everything Katt had heard about these guys marked them as self centered jack asses. Then Katt realized that was what Venom had said about them. Then why did Corenaria trust them as data shippers?   
They brought her back to a space station a stone throw's away from Corenaria.   
The leader of the group introduced himself to her as Falco Lombardi. He was a nice guy, and boy was he hunky, not bulky.   
He asked her where Katt had gotten the Invader, the obvious answer never crossing his mind.   
"They wreaked my ship. So I figured I could take one of their's in return." She lied straight to his face.   
He helped her fix up the Invader but left the details to her. She gave the thing a new paint job and even named it. Cat's Paw.   
Falco asked her if Katt wanted to stay with the Hot Roders, with him, but she turned him down. Corenaria was still her goal. He gave her a bound fair well and she took off.   
A few months later Katt heard about Falco joining the Cornarian mercenary core Star Fox. She guessed that was where Corenaria had gotten their profile on her. There were a thousand things going on during this war, they didn't have time look in detail to one loose cannon. For that, Katt was grateful. 

Katt came out of her day dreaming as she approach her home world. It had lost it's blue color and turned a collection of greens and yellows. And she knew she had helped make it so.   
She didn't care if she couldn't make up for it, or couldn't correct her mistakes, she now knew which side was which. She hoped Star Fox did somehow make it to Andross's palace. And that Falco make it out alive. She would be waiting for him if he did. She doubted she would ever tell him the truth though. She wasn't so much concerned what he would think as what Corenaria's military would do if they found out she was a Venom defector.   
She landed the Cat's Paw a mile outside the city. Not that there was any real worry, not with Venom's radar system destroyed.   
Getting out and stretching her legs. She walked down the polluted beach shore. Beautiful in an eerie short of way. She was there before she knew it. She knew the way by heart. No one had built where her sister's house once stood. For that Katt was grateful. The asphalt was like a sea of black tar were not one brick laid upon another.   
"Sis . . . I"m sorry, I won't insult you by saying I didn't mean those things I said to you. I know now I was totally wrong. Kinda late huh? I just came back here to say. I'm sorry. Sorry being such a jerk. Sorry for not listening to you and- I don't think I have enough time left in my eight remaining lives to mention all the mistakes I've made. I don't care I can't make anything up. I'm glade if I can though. Please . . .. just forgive me." She listened to the winds for a minute. Then signed.   
"Thank you." 

All reviews, good, bad, flame, constructive crittizem all welcome. 


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